Articles

CHRISTIAN SCIENCE AS A HEALING METHOD is reliable and effective. Why? It's based on the divine laws of God, and the spiritually scientific way in which the Master Christian, Jesus Christ, healed.

RECENTLY I WAS STUDYING the Gospel of Luke's account of Jesus' walk to Emmaus with two of his followers after the resurrection. I was struck by this comment from one of those with whom Jesus had just spoken: "Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?" ( 24:32 ) Think of it! These followers apparently did not realize at first that the man talking with them was Jesus, but they so strongly felt the spiritual animus of the Christ in his words that their hearts "burned" within them! Have you ever had an experience in which you felt such joy and inspiration that your heart "burned"? Athletes, artists, and musicians often put in endless hours of practice to cultivate a skill or pursue a craft without a single complaint because their hearts yearn to master it.

In The Chapter "Christian Science Practice" in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy describes someone she saw as the model for Christian Science healers: "It is related in the seventh chapter of Luke's Gospel that Jesus was once the honored guest of a certain Pharisee, by name Simon, though he was quite unlike Simon the disciple. While they were at meat, an unusual incident occurred, as if to interrupt the scene of Oriental festivity.

If you ask what's new with the Board of Lectureship, the answer could easily fill more than this page. Our ongoing challenge and opportunity is to explore new ways of telling the world about Christian Science and its Discoverer, Mary Baker Eddy, while remaining true to our roots in the Manual of The Mother Church.

THE KIDS WERE IN BED. The meeting was over.

AS LONG AS I CAN REMEMBER, THE STAGE HAS BEEN MY SECOND HOME. Whether I was performing in a talent show, dance recital, or choral concert, I took advantage of every opportunity.

In these pages we've gathered several shorter items—articles of less than a page in length and excerpts from longer manuscripts that offer useful, inspiring insights. We hope you enjoy this kind of short-form nourishment in each issue.

ABOUT A YEAR AGO, I attended a Bible conference where participants washed one another's feet as a reenactment of Jesus washing his disciples' feet (see John 13:4–15). I chose not to attend, as the idea of a stranger touching my feet made me uncomfortable, but those who did participate were deeply moved on a spiritual level.

AROUND THANKSGIVING LAST YEAR, my family had to move my dad into a Christian Science care facility in California. A long-standing condition seemed to require more assistance than my mom could give on a frequent basis.

EVER SINCE JESUS EMBARKED on his ministry there has been confusion and disagreement about who he was. Increasing discord over his identity among fourth century Christians—especially his relation to the Father and to the Holy Spirit—caused the Roman emperor Constantine to call together a council of bishops in 325 AD to settle the matter and restore harmony in the Church: Was Jesus Christ—the promised Messiah—God, or the Son of God; coexistent with the Father, or created by Him? At this Council of Nicea the bishops drafted a document known as the Nicene Creed declaring that the Son is "true God from true God," who came down from heaven and "by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man.